ANALYSIS OF THE CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF SELF-MEDICATION AMONGST YOUTHS IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF SELECT UNDERGRADUATES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS) Â
ABSTRACT
Self-medication is fast gaining grounds as an important component of health care and educational system both in developing and developed nations. More so, unlike other aspects of self-care, it involves the use of drugs, which is capable of doing good as well as afflicts harm. Numerous subjects reveal that there are risks, such as drug resistance, misdiagnosis, below or over dose of drugs, use of expired drugs, drug interactions, prolonged duration of use, poly-pharmacy risk associated with improper use of non-prescribed medicine.
Generally, youths/students are seen to be the greatest and worst offenders in the issue of self-medication as they resort to use of drugs in order to cope with academic challenges and stress. The University of Lagos students are not left out in this issue of problem of self-medication, drug abuse and misuse.
Some of the problems associated with self-medication such as masked diagnoses, use of excessive drug dosage, prolonged duration of use, drug interactions, polypharmacy and superinfection can occur in self-medicating individuals .However, there is substantial variation in the prevalence rates of selfmedication among developing and developed nations due to inherent differences in cultural and socioeconomic factors, disparities in health care systems such as reimbursement policies, access to health care, and drug dispensing policies [17]. Analysis of the causes and effects of self medication amongst youths in Nigeria has not been widely studied. The factors that influence selfmedication practices remain issues of intense debate in academic discourse. Practices in self-medication have raised a lot of unresolved research questions such as: Which ailments do Nigerian youths treat through self-medication? What are the types and sources of these non-prescribed medicines? Is there any relationship between level of education and self-medication practice? What factors influence selfmedication practices among university students? What strategies can be crafted to discourage self-medication practices in general?Â
The study will assess analysis of the causes and effects of self-medication amongst youths in Nigeria (A case study of select undergraduates of the University of Lagos), as well as the factors associated with self-medication.
Contents
CHAPTER ONE 2
INTRODUCTION 2
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 2
1.2 Statement of the problem 3
1.3 The objective of the study 4
1.4 Research Questions 5
1.5 Research Hypothesis 5
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY 5
1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY 6
1.8 Limitation of the Study 6
REFERENCES 7
CHAPTER TWO 10
LITERATURE REVIEW 10
2.1 INTRODUCTION 10
2.2 Conceptual Framework 11
2.2.1 Sources of Knowledge on the use of Medications/Drugs 11
2.2.2 Concept of Medication/Drugs and Self-Medication 11
2.2.3 Predisposing Factors to Self-Medication 12
2.2.4 Consequences/Dangers of Self-Medication 12
2.3 Theoretical Framework 13
CHAPTER THREE 16
Methodology 16
3.1 Research Design 16
3.2Â Â Â The Study Area 16
3.3Â Â Population of the Study 16
3.4 Sample Size and Sampling Techniques 16
3.5 Sources of Data Collection 17
3.6 Instrument for Data Collection 17
3.7 Validity of Research Instrument 17
3.8 Reliability of the Instrument 18
3.9 Administration of the Instrument 18
3.10 Methods of Data Analysis 18
References 18
CHAPTER FOUR 19
DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION 19
Preamble 19
4.2 Demographic Characteristics of Respondents 19
4.3 Analysis of the Respondents’ Views on Research Question one: 20
4.4 Testing Hypotheses 23
4.5 Discussion of Findings 24
CHAPTER FIVE 25
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 25
5.1 Preamble 25
Summary 25
Conclusion 25
5.4 Recommendations 26
References 27
Appendix 32
CHAPTER ONEÂ
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Self-medication is the use of drugs with therapeutic intent but without professional advice or prescription. It has also been defined as the use of nonprescription medicines by people on their own initiative [1]. Drugs that are prone to self-medication include analgesics, antimalarials, antibiotics and cough syrups, among others [2]. Self-medication with antibiotics occur in many developing countries where drugs are not well-regulated. Hence there is easier access to prescription or over-the-counter medicines without prescription. Self-medication, could cause bacteria resistance to such antibiotics and may precipitate the emergence of multipleresistant organisms that would be difficult to treat and this has caused increased morbidity [3-6]. Perception of illness and incessant advertising, among others, have increased the prevalence of self-medication which accounts for about 2.9 - 3.7 % causes of death in hospitals as a result of drug-drug interactions [7-13]. It has also been reported that drug use is influenced by the sociodemographic characteristics of drug consumers such as gender, morbidity, age, attitudes about life and health, stress, and social roles but has nothing to do with education and ethnicity [14-16]. Some of the problems associated with self-medication such as masked diagnoses, use of excessive drug dosage, prolonged duration of use, drug interactions, polypharmacy and superinfection can occur in self-medicating individuals .However, there is substantial variation in the prevalence rates of selfmedication among developing and developed nations due to inherent differences in cultural and socioeconomic factors, disparities in health care systems such as reimbursement policies, access to health care, and drug dispensing policies [17]. Analysis of the causes and effects of self medication amongst youths in Nigeria has not been widely studied. The factors that influence selfmedication practices remain issues of intense debate in academic discourse. Practices in self-medication have raised a lot of unresolved research questions such as: Which ailments do Nigerian youths treat through self-medication? What are the types and sources of these non-prescribed medicines? Is there any relationship between level of education and self-medication practice? What factors influence selfmedication practices among university students? What strategies can be crafted to discourage self-medication practices in general? The objective of this study was to assess Analysis of the causes and effects of self medication amongst youths in Nigeria (A case study of select undergraduates of the University of Lagos), as well as the factors associated with self-medication.
1.2 Statement of the problem
Self-medication is fast gaining grounds as an important component of health care and educational system both in developing and developed nations. More so, unlike other aspects of self-care, it involves the use of drugs, which is capable of doing good as well as afflicts harm. Numerous subjects reveal that there are risks, such as drug resistance, misdiagnosis, below or over dose of drugs, use of expired drugs, drug interactions, prolonged duration of use, poly-pharmacy risk associated with improper use of non-prescribed medicine.
Generally, youths/students are seen to be the greatest and worst offenders in the issue of self-medication as they resort to use of drugs in order to cope with academic challenges and stress. The University of Lagos students are not left out in this issue of problem of self-medication, drug abuse and misuse.
Some of the problems associated with self-medication such as masked diagnoses, use of excessive drug dosage, prolonged duration of use, drug interactions, polypharmacy and superinfection can occur in self-medicating individuals .However, there is substantial variation in the prevalence rates of selfmedication among developing and developed nations due to inherent differences in cultural and socioeconomic factors, disparities in health care systems such as reimbursement policies, access to health care, and drug dispensing policies [17]. Analysis of the causes and effects of self medication amongst youths in Nigeria has not been widely studied. The factors that influence selfmedication practices remain issues of intense debate in academic discourse. Practices in self-medication have raised a lot of unresolved research questions such as: Which ailments do Nigerian youths treat through self-medication? What are the types and sources of these non-prescribed medicines? Is there any relationship between level of education and self-medication practice? What factors influence selfmedication practices among university students? What strategies can be crafted to discourage self-medication practices in general?Â
On this premise, the study will assess analysis of the causes and effects of self-medication amongst youths in Nigeria (A case study of select undergraduates of the University of Lagos), as well as the factors associated with self-medication.
1.3 The objective of the study
The objective of this study was to assess Analysis of the causes and effects of self medication amongst youths in Nigeria (A case study of select undergraduates of the University of Lagos), as well as the factors associated with self-medication.
Following objectives include;
1. To assess the ailments Nigerian youths treat through self-medication.
2. To assess the types and sources of these non-prescribed medicines.
3. To ascertain if there is any relationship between level of education and self-medication practice among Nigerian youths.Â
4. To know the factors that influence self-medication practices among Nigerian youths?Â
5. To analyze the strategies that can be crafted to discourage self-medication practices in general.Â
1.4 Research Questions
1. Which ailments do Nigerian youths treat through self-medication?Â
2. What are the types and sources of these non-prescribed medicines?Â
3. Is there any relationship between level of education and self-medication practice?Â
4. What factors influence selfmedication practices among Nigerian youths?Â
5. What strategies can be crafted to discourage self-medication practices in general?Â
1.5 Research Hypothesis
Ho1: there is a significant relationship between level of education and self-medication practice among Nigerian youths.
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The results of this study will be very essential in assessing Analysis of the causes and effects of self-medication amongst youths in Nigeria (A case study of select undergraduates of the University of Lagos), also the study will be useful for potential researchers as literatures, which will be interested to carry out for further study in this field, and it will also bring the following benefits:Â
1. Increase future referenceÂ
2. Bring new knowledgeÂ
3. Help Needs for future researchersÂ
This study will encourage youths and everyone who has ever practiced self-medication to desist from the act as it might lead to untimely death or complications on the human body. .
For the students, it will enhance their knowledge about the causes and effects of self-medication, and also help them in sound decision making by avoiding irresponsible (inappropriate) self-medication. The study will provide relevant information to parents, teachers, social workers, guidance and counsellors on the broad concept of selfmedication and to determine effective ways of solving the problems of irresponsible (inappropriate) selfmedication.
The study will help the federal, state, and local ministries of education, health and other relevant government and non-governmental bodies to plan effectively towards drug control/regulation and establishment of hard and hazardous free society. Finally, it will enable the school curriculum planners or the ministry of education to include subjects on drugs and consumer education in the school curriculum.
1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This study assesses Analysis of the causes and effects of self-medication amongst youths in Nigeria (A case study of select undergraduates of the University of Lagos). Therefore, the respondents shall cover the youths in University of Lagos.Â
1.8 Limitation of the StudyÂ
In the course of this study the researcher probably encountered by the following limitations. The study was conducted at University of Lagos which is the case study. Therefore the study could be limited by the following limitations or Problems.
Time factor: It is anticipated that the time for this study may not be enough to carry out intensive and extensive study since some of the information is not easily and quickly available. Therefore the researcher used extra time; weekends so as to be able to collect, analyze and interpreted the collected data.Â
Data confidentiality: Most of respondents may hesitate on the provision of their data, so they may not provide adequate and sufficient data. Therefore, the researcher will have to assure the management that data that would be provided will be used for research purpose only, and will not be disclosed to anyone not involved in this study.
Lack of enough funds: The funds provided is not enough to meet all expenses during the study like transport cost, meal allowance, photocopies and stationeries expenses. Hence the researcher conducted the study in accordance with the fund provided by the sponsor and the researcher own fund.
The questionnaire was self-reported which could have led to underreporting of selfmedication practices. The structure of questionnaires could affect prevalence estimates; longer questionnaires could result in a higher prevalence of self-reported self-medication, whereas shorter questionnaires with open questions could result in a lower prevalence of self-reported self-medication within the same population [34].
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